Locations

Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center

Expertise

Hematologic Malignancies, Leukemia, Medical Oncology

Research Interests

Leukemia; My research interests include the development of therapies directed at activated signal transduction systems in cancer. In Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) one such activated pathway involves the receptor tyrosine kinase FLT3. FLT3 is mutated in about 1/3 of cases of adult AML and confers a poor prognosis. Several agents are in development targeting FLT3 and our laboratory has developed methods for the determination of the degree to which these compounds inhibit FLT3 over the course of the treatment cycle. We assay target in both circulating leukemia and use a plasma based assay for ex vivo target assessment in patients with insufficient circulating leukemia. We have found that transient inhibition of the target enzyme is associated with inferior clinical responses, and have used this knowledge to modify clinical trial design for improved target modulation. We are currently developing assays for compounds targeting the PI3 kinase pathway and the MEK/AKT pathway and plan on incorporating these correlatives into upcoming clinical trials.